It was time for Xia Xiaolan to go to school again.
She didn’t deliberately conceal her whereabouts, casually walking down the street by the school entrance, which inevitably meant passing by Zhang’s restaurant.
Zhang Cui had been anxiously waiting for days to catch sight of Xia Xiaolan. During this time, her mind had been so distracted that she couldn’t even concentrate on cooking. Customers complained that the bun fillings were either too salty or too bland, so Zhang Cui simply handed over these tasks to Jiang Lianxiang.
At Zhang’s restaurant, Zhang Cui was still the most skilled cook. She had run a street food stall in the county town for three years, and though her cooking was terrible at first, she gradually improved through practice.
For the sake of business, Zhang Cui couldn’t slack off even as the owner. Her brother Zhang Manfu was responsible for kneading dough, Jiang Lianxiang handled various odd jobs, while Zhang Cui was the one who mastered the flavors – she had the most experience in determining the amount of seasonings and the ratio of vegetables to meat. But now, her thoughts were completely occupied with Xia Xiaolan.
She had originally thought that by approaching Principal Sun, Xia Xiaolan’s expulsion would be practically guaranteed. Who knew that despite all the gifts they sent, the principal’s wife would come to lecture them instead?
Had Xia Xiaolan become a good student?
They even said that Xia Xiaolan faced many hardships in pursuing her education and that the Xia family should put aside their prejudices and help her more.
Zhang Cui was so angry she nearly had a cerebral hemorrhage!
Help Xia Xiaolan? She must be crazy.
This matter weighed so heavily on her mind that Zhang Cui couldn’t eat or sleep well. Could Xia Xiaolan become a university student? She asked Xia Changzheng to find a solution, but he was also furious. Xia Xiaolan and Liu Fen had even transferred their household registration away, so the Xia family had no way to control Xia Xiaolan anymore. Since Xia Xiaolan neither relied on the Xia family for support nor needed their help with tuition fees, Xia Changzheng and Zhang Cui had lost all their leverage.
“Should we have Dajun intervene?”
Xia Changzheng shook his head. His second brother might not be clever, but he wasn’t that stupid either.
Xia Xiaolan wasn’t asking the Xia family to fund her education, and if she got into university, even her father might benefit from the prestige. Although Xia Dajun was a bit slow, he wasn’t intellectually disabled – why would he stop Xia Xiaolan from studying? Besides, Dajun couldn’t control Xia Xiaolan either; that girl was too independent.
“Zhang Er’lai from Shipozi Village got sentenced to life imprisonment…”
Xia Changzheng expressed his regret. Zhang Er’lai had lusted after Xia Xiaolan for a long time. If they could have him cause trouble at the school and spread rumors about his affairs with Xia Xiaolan, she might become too embarrassed to stay at County No. 1 Middle School!
Besides Zhang Er’lai, where else could they find a suitable person?
The crackdown hadn’t subsided yet, and street vendors were being careful to avoid being reported, let alone those hooligans who dared harass women. They were all in hiding, afraid of being arrested by the police to meet the crackdown quotas.
“Should we ask Ziyu’s opinion?”
Xia Changzheng and his wife had initially wanted to handle this matter themselves. They didn’t consider themselves fools – given their combined age and experience, how could they not outsmart a mere girl like Xia Xiaolan? But things hadn’t gone as planned. Ever since Xia Ziyu left home to study in Beijing, without their daughter’s strategizing, nothing seemed to go smoothly for them.
When it came to leveraging Principal Sun’s influence, Xia Ziyu didn’t need to give any gifts – Principal Sun had offered help voluntarily.
Xia Changzheng had sent so many gifts to the Sun family, only to be lectured by Principal Sun’s wife. Zhang Cui had learned some tricks from her daughter Xia Ziyu, but it was like drawing a tiger and ending up with something that barely resembled a dog. While she could maintain appearances in the Xia family, her scheming fell short once outside Dahe Village.
“Wait a bit longer. First, ask Ziyu if she’s coming back for winter break.”
A telegram couldn’t fully explain the situation. Without Xia Ziyu coming back to see for herself, how would she understand the changes in Xia Xiaolan?
While Zhang Cui tried to maintain her composure, she didn’t waste the opportunity to incite Xia Hongxia. Xia Hongxia had been keeping a close watch on the County No. 1 Middle School entrance and finally spotted Xia Xiaolan. She quickly reported:
“Uncle’s wife, she’s come to school!”
There she was, Xia Xiaolan, carrying her books.
Her clothes were neither new nor old, but she was different. Gone was the foolishness that had put her on the same level as Xia Hongxia. She had become much more composed. The frivolity and impulsiveness had disappeared, revealing Xia Xiaolan’s full beauty.
This girl was too pretty.
A dark look flashed in Zhang Cui’s eyes. Whether the elders liked it or not, it was an undeniable fact that men were attracted to enchantresses.
Xia Ziyu was wary of Xia Xiaolan stealing Wang Jianhua’s heart, and this attitude had infected Zhang Cui. If Xia Xiaolan got into university as well, would Wang Jianhua have a change of heart?
Zhang Cui untied her apron. “Hongxia, stay and help in the shop. I’m going to have a few words with Xiaolan.”
She wanted to find out what that little tramp was thinking.
“Xiaolan’s here?”
Old Zhao, the school guard, felt obligated to Xia Xiaolan, and since she had always been polite to him, he returned her kindness with warmth.
Old Zhao kindly informed Xia Xiaolan that her cousin had been lurking around the school gate, seemingly waiting to ambush her.
Xia Xiaolan understood the hint and casually handed him a pack of “Butterfly” cigarettes from her pocket. Old Zhao lowered his voice: “I saw Principal Sun’s wife eating at Zhang’s restaurant the other day.”
Xia Xiaolan’s eyes flickered. “Zhang’s is the only restaurant around here.”
Old Zhao wasn’t speaking without reason – one should never underestimate a unit’s security guard. The guard saw everyone who came and went each day, and their ability to observe and gossip was first-rate. By mentioning Principal Sun’s wife eating at Zhang’s, he was hinting to Xia Xiaolan about the connection between Zhang’s restaurant and Principal Sun.
So they were working through Principal Sun’s connections.
Xia Xiaolan understood now, which explained why Principal Sun had personally met with her last time… However, given her test scores, even if the principal didn’t like her, at least he wouldn’t show obvious disdain. Xia Xiaolan hugged her books tightly – good grades were her shield. With her solid capabilities, how could mere gossip from busybodies hurt her?
“Xiaolan, is that you?”
Before Xia Xiaolan could step into the school, an excited voice called out from behind.
She didn’t need to turn around. The Xia family had many peculiar characters, and Zhang Cui wasn’t just troublesome – she was a drama queen. The whole world owed Zhang Cui an Academy Award, but Xia Xiaolan had no intention of indulging her. She pretended not to hear and quickly ran into the school.
Zhang Cui had prepared many things to say, but they all came to nothing. Why wasn’t Xia Xiaolan following the script?
“That’s my niece… poor thing.”
Under Old Zhao’s watchful gaze, Zhang Cui maintained her act, her face full of concern for Xia Xiaolan.
Old Zhao stared at her for a while, thinking of the Butterfly cigarettes in his pocket, and nodded in agreement:
“Yes, she is pitiful. Can’t even study in peace. Earlier someone claiming to be her cousin came to spread rumors about her. Which relative of Xia’s are you?”
Zhang Cui’s face turned red and purple.
Who did County No. 1 Middle School hire as their guard? How annoying!
If Ziyu were here, she would get this nasty guard fired. Zhang Cui gritted her teeth – the monk might run away, but the temple remains. She would wait; Xia Xiaolan would have to leave school eventually.